Subcommittee Chairman Candice Miller (R-MI) on the hearing: “In recent years the Department of Homeland Security has defined progress in securing our border in terms of resources put in the field – how many agents, miles of fence, or technology we have deployed. While those are important, success in securing the border must be defined by real and measurable benchmarks. This brings up important questions for the officials at the Department: What does a secure border look like? How do we use the resources at our disposal to get there? And finally what is the best way to measure progress?

“On Tuesday, the Border and Maritime Subcommittee will focus on a discussion of desired outcomes. American taxpayers have made massive investments in the U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and the U.S. Coast Guard, and the amount of technology we’ve deployed at our borders. In these difficult budgetary times it is more important than ever that Congress examines what the American people have gotten for this investment, how we will measure progress going forward, and if we are on the path to provide our nation with the secure borders we need.”